Kitten with two faces dies days after birth

The King family named the rare kitten Biscuits and Gravy, or just Biscuit for short. It was born with four eyes, two noses and two mouths. (Source: KOIN/CNN)

May 23, 2020 at 11:09 PM CDT - Updated May 24 at 10:07 PM

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN/CNN) - An Oregon family says in a Facebook post their rare kitten with two faces has died nearly four days after their pregnant cat gave birth.

When the King family woke up Wednesday to a new litter of kittens, they found one of the six babies had two faces, including four eyes, two noses and two mouths.

The family named the rare kitten Biscuits and Gravy, or just Biscuit for short. They’re not sure but believe the little one was the runt of the litter because it seemed smaller than its siblings. Unfortunately, Biscuit did not grow, despite eating a lot, and died after less than four days, according to the Kings.

Kyla King reached out to the family’s veterinarian after Biscuit’s birth to learn more about the kitten’s condition, how to care for it and its odds of survival. She learned there wasn’t much to be done medically, and all she could do was make it comfortable and help it eat.

She kept the kitten warm by tucking it into her shirt and even slept with it through the night in a separate room from her husband, BJ King, who is allergic to cats. She bottle-fed Biscuit because it was having trouble nursing. The unique kitten had a special talent: it could meow and eat at the same time.

Kyla King also bottle-fed Biscuit’s mother, the only tame barn cat that lives on the family farm, as a kitten.

This photo was taken about an hour before Biscuits died. Kyla gave up 3 1/2 days of her life to put all of her efforts...

Cats with two faces are known as “Janus” cats after the Roman god Janus, who is often depicted with two faces in mythology. They suffer from a rare congenital defect called disprosopus, or cranial duplication. Most don’t live longer than a day.